Belt shifting apparatus



OCI. 1l, Q A. RlCH BELT SHITING APPARATUS A Filed March 6, 1936 3Sheets-Sheet 1 A TTORNEYS.

Oct. 11, 1938. I Q A, RlCH 2,132,880

BELT SHIFTING APPARATUS Filedjdarch 6, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY Quim 6MMA TTORNEYS.

I. Oct. 11, 1938-. AC, A, R|H 2,132,880

BELT SHIFTING APPARATUS Filed March E, 1936 '3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VENTOR.

laf/2.5' .fafa/z A TTORNEYS.

head drive therefor;

Patented oct. 11,1938

UNiTED ksl'ATllazsg Pg'xrlszrrrA oFFlcE This invention relateslto abeltsh'ifting apparatus, and has for one of its objects vth'eprovisionvof means for selecting and shifting either one of a plurality of beltsby manipulation o f the control lever and thereby avoidingthey necessityof climbing up to rearrange the operating parts of the overheadmechanism. ,1

Another object of the invention isi the provision of an arrangementwherebyV one of three belts is always k,shifted when either one of theother .two .belts is selected'and shifted, while maintaining'the guidefor the belt not shifted in a position to retainthe belt not shifted onits loosepulley. l Another object of the invention isto maintain each ofthe belt guides in engagement Withlits belt at all times regardless of`thefselection. or position of shifting'of the partsofthe'apparatus.Another object of the inventionisgjthe selecting of the' desired belt tobe shifted .byA a movement of the control leverin' oneplane whileleaving the control lever operative vin a different plane for theactualshifting of the belt selected from one position to another.

With these and other objectsinview, the invention consists ofV certainnovelpfeatures of con- A struction,V as will be more fully described,rand particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings: I

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a machinesuch for instance as a screw machineshowing the over.-

Fig. 2 isa top planviewlooking down on'the loverhead Works which areutilizedfor providing different speeds in driving the machine;

Fig. 3 is an end view of the overhead'works;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line II-41 of Fig.' 3, looking inthedirection ofV the arrow;`

Fig. 5 is a View similar to Fig.` 4 withv the parts shifted to adifferent position; .ff

Fig. 6 is a detail of the control member or shipper lever and its mannerof mounting;

Fig. '7 is a sectional view online -T-'I of Fig. 6, showing a fragmentalupper portion of the shipperlever; Y

Fig. 8 is a sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig.4;

Fig. 9 is a detail view showing the "1 nz1. nnery of, retaining theshipper mechanism against sliding when the shipperrodis moved; Fig. 10is aperspective View ofthe belt guide and its mounting;

Fig. 1l is a perspective view of oneof the arms for selectively engagingthe belt guide.r

In driving certain machinesY such as screw machines, a V pluralityofdiflere'nty speeds are desired for the work. Different.l speeds may beobtained by step pulleysfwith abelt movable' from one position toanother andtheni'by drivingthe shaft upon which one of these steppulleys is mounted at different speeds anotherfseries orr two speeds forthe driving set of step pulleys, the arrangement being such that byclimbing up to the overheadworks and making an adjustment the differentdrive of the driven pulley may be accomplished'while using the shipperlever in the same manner. Climbing overheadA and makingjthis adjustmentconsumes some little vtime and is awkward to perform; and in order thatthe operator may avoid `this climbing overhead to make such anadjustment andrather may control the entire range of operation oftheoverhead Works from .theshipper jlever, I have so arranged the mechanismthat by moving vthe lower end of thefshipperlever either forwardly orbackwardly I may select the desired belt and consequently the speed forthe driven step pulley,

the shipper lever otherwise operating inthe same rmanner as heretofore,and thus it becomes un-` Fig 2, II) designates the driving countershaftand II the driven countershaft from which power is supplied to themachine toA be operated. Upon the driving countershaft I0 there ris astep pulley I 2 which drives s tep pulley I3 on the driven shaft II,thus, it will be apparent that by shifting the belt from one section toanother various speeds may be obtained.

'I'he countershafts wand II are supported by means-of brackets I4 and I5having attaching plates I Ii securedto overhead beams I'I, shown inFigs. 1 and 3. YThese brackets I4 and I5 provide bearings I8 for thecountershaft Il! and I9 for the'countershaft Il, while they also provideopenings for mounting and guiding the. shipper 'rod 22 which is axiallyslidable in thesejguide openings and is also rockable in these guideopenings as a bearing.V The auxiliary shipper rod 2I is xedlymountedinthese brackets I4 and I5 vertically above the rod 22.

Upon the driving countershaft I0 there is mounted a loose pulley 25 andtight pulley 2S xas one set, and a loose pulley 2l and atight pulley 28as another set, each of which sets are vdriven at different fspeeds bybelts, not shown. The belt guides foreach of thesesets, however, aredesignated generally 29 and 30 and each consists 'of tubular slidemember 32 with a pair of a'rms33 arranged something in the manner` of afork to extend along-either side ofthe belt and guide the belt from onepulley to another as the fork is shif'teci. 'mese beit guides 29 `andVso are siidably mounted upon theauxiliary shipper rod shaft 2i rangemay be provided, it being usual to provide while the splitV member 34 isclamped about each Y tube 32 by bolts 35 and 36 with its bifurcated,portions 31 engaging opposite sides of the shipper A spring detent 38fixed on shaft 2l by rod 22. adjustable collar 3l engages in a notch 39in the slide 32 for releasably holding the belt guide in Va position forretaining vthe belt on the loosepulley.

Upon shipper rod22 there are mounted a pair of L-shaped arms 40 and 4|each'having a notch 42 therein, which arms are held in fixed relation tothe shipper rod 22 by means of their setscrews 44. The relation of theseshipper arms is such that one is at an angle to the other, as shown inFig..8. When the belt guides are both in a posif tion for directing thebelt on the loose pulley the f notches of these arms willber'espectively opposite the members 340iY the beltguides and eitherbelt guide may be engaged. by rocking the shipper rod 22 about its axis,that is, by rotating the shipper rod in a clock-wise direction as viewedin-Fig. 8, the arm 46 will be moved into Vengagement with the portion 34of the Ybelt guida, while.

upon positiveV engagement of the guide'for movement. f v

Theshipper rod 22l is operated by a `control member or shipper lever 50.An arm5| is fixed f upon the shipper rod 22 ,andis provided with aU-shaped projection 52 through which the lever 56 extends, while at itslower end the arm 5l is provided with a plate 5.3 having astud 54extendingV therefrom and holding a plate 55 in spaced relation to theplate 53. Between these plates the control member 50 extends with ,aslot] 56 therein receiving the stud 54 to permit of' movementlongitudinally of the member 5l) relative to the arm 5i. A spring 51engages the stud 54 and a hook 58 on the'member 56 tends to draw thecontrol member 50 .downwardly with reference to the arm 15| and throughthe .U- shaped guide 53.

A bracket'60 is fastened overhead and provides amounting for ar stud 6|which projects outwardly therefrom. This stud is mounted in the bracket66 by any suitable means and has grooves 62 and 63 therein. 'I'he upperend of the control member50 isprovided with a slot 64 for the receptionof the stud 6l. A blade 65 which is v set into the end of the lever maybe received in either -groove 62 or 63 to retain the lever iny twodifferent positions when the latter is swung about the shipper rod 22 asan axis. The stud 6| acts as a pivot axis for swinging the shipper lever50 vto-slide the shipper rod 22 axially. ill/'henl the shipper lever isin the position shown in Fig. 6 the armvli will-engage the guide 29forshifting the belt Vfrom pulley 25 to pulleyr26', while the arm 4| winbe free of guide 3o so that it win be held by detent 38-'in theposition'shownfin Figs. 2and4.

Ifv it is desired to operate the other belt which engages pulleys 21 and28, the shipper lever will be pulled forwardly from thefull lineposition of Fig. 6 to the dotted line position of this figure toroclrthe4 shipper rod v22 abouty own axis,`

which isaccomplished by the control member 56 being forced upwardly todisengage the blade 65 from its groove 63 after which it may be -movedabout the axis of the rod 22Y as a pivot until Vabove the groove 62 `sothat upon release the lever 50 will drop to locate the blade in thegroove 62 which will move arm 4l into engagementwith guide 30, afterwhichthe lever may be rocked about the stud 60 as a vpivot to slide theshipper vrod 22 axially for shifting the belt f from pulley 21 'topulley 28.

The work in the machine 65V is driven forwardly-by the pulley 66 andbelt 61 or in reverse Y by pulley A68 and belt 69; while the cam shaftof the machine is driven from pulley 10 on a separate shaft 14| byl belt12; VThe pulley 16 is controlledby the tight pulley 13 having acompanion loose pulley 14 by a belt not shown; and in order that I mayshift the, belt from pulley 14 to pulley 13 at thetime of selecting andshiftingeither one 'of the belt guides 29 or V3T3 I'provide another beltguide 15 comprising a pair of arms 16 ixed on the shipper rod 22 to movewith thisshipper rod at all times for-shifting the belt in thisconnection regardless of which of the other guidesis lselected, foroperation.

l. Bythis arrangement I may select either belt guide 29A or 30 by movingthe handle end of the shipper lever forward or-back and then ,bypivoting the lever about the stud 6I I may ymove the shipper rod in theusual manner for shifting the belt guide as desired.

, The foregoing description isvdirected solely towards the constructionillustrated, but 'I desire it to be understood thatY I reserve theprivilege l,

of resorting .toA all,the mechanical changes to whichl the device issusceptible, ther inventionV being dened Aand limited only bythe termsof the appended claims. Y

I claim: f 1. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a beltguide for each belt, a shipper lever, A

andtmeans operable .upon movement of the shipper lever comprising asingle rod through whichall movement is transmitted for selecting andmoving one ofsaid guides without moving the other, said means beingadapted for rocking movement for vengaging the guide selected.

2. In a belt shiftingfapparatus fora pair of belts,'a belt guide foreach belt, a shipper lever, means for Amounting said lever for movementin two planes ,at a substantial angleto each other,

and mechanism connecting said leverto saidguides for selecting thedesired guidefupon movement-of the lever Vin oneY plane and for shifting.said selected-guide upon movement of the lever in the other'plane, saidmechanism when in posi-V tion to operate one guide being free from theother guide. y l

V3. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a belt guide foreach belt, a shipper lever, means for.`mounting said lever for movementin two planes at a'substantial angle-to each other, means for connectingsaid .lever to said guides including a rod for transmitting all movementfor selecting and moving one of said guides, and releasable means Vforholding Ythe guide not selected in position during movement of the otherguide7 Y .y I

4. In abelt shifting apparatus fora pair of belts, a belt guide for eachbelt, a shipper lever, means formounting said lever for movement in twoplanes at substantially right angles to each other, meansforiconnectingsaid lever to said guides including a singleY rod for transmitting alltially right angles to each` other,` means for' connectingsaid levertosaid guides including a single rod for selecting and moving one ofsaid guides, and a spring detent engageable with each of said guides tohold it in a position for holding each of said ,belts on the loosepulley until positively moved therefrom byV said means.

6. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a belt guideforeach belt, a shipper lever, means` for mounting said lever for movementin two planes at substantially right angles to each other, means forconnecting said lever Vto said guides including a single rod forselecting and moving one of said guides without moving the other, saidmeans being so arranged that one of said belts is shifted regardless ofthe selected. position.

'7. In a belt shifting apparatus, three belt shifting guides, means forshifting one of said guidesV including a common shaft for selectivelyshifting therewith either Yone of the othertwo guides, and resilientmeans xedly mounted on' the shaft for releasably Yholding the selectiveguides in definite position until selected and positively moved. 1 1

8. In a belt shifting apparatus, three belt shifting guides, a controlmember mounted for movement in two differentv planes, means forselecting one of said guides upon a movement of the control member inone plane and moving it VVupon.

a movement of the control member in another plane, said means alsoserving `to move another one of said guides regardless of the firstguide guide selected, whereby two guides are movedV and one isstationary, and resilient means for holding the guides in position untilpositively moved.

10. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a pair of guidesone for each belt, a shipper rod, an arm carried by said rod forengaging one of said guides when the rod is in one Vposition and asecond arm carriedby said rod and angularly disposed with respect to thefirst `arm for engaging the other guidewhen the arm is in anotherposition, said arms being so arranged Von said rod so thatvwhen one armengages the guide the other arm is free from its guide, and means formoving said shipper rod for selective operation of said guides.

11. In a belt shifting apparatus for a. pair of belts, a pair of guidesone for each belt, means on which said guides are slidably supported, anaxially slidable and rotatably rockable shipper rod underlying saidmeans, an arm carried by said rod for engaging one of Vsaid guides whenoperating thethird guide when other guidesis shifted.

the rod is in one rotative position and a second arm carried by said rodfor engaging the other guide when the arm is in another differentrotative position, said arms being so arranged on said rod that when onearm engages the guide the other arm is free from its guide, and a levermounted to effect a rockable and axial movement of said rod for movingsaid shipper rod for selective operation of said guides.

12. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a pair of guidesone for each belt, a shipper rod, an arm'carried by said rod forengaging oneV of said guides when the rod is in one position anda secondarm carried by said rod for engaging the other guide When the arm is inanother position, said arms being so arranged on said rod that when onearm engages the guide the-other arm is free from its guide, a

lever movable about the said rod as an axis to rock the rod and armsfrom one position to another, and means engageable by said lever ineither position to pivot it for swinging in a different plane to axiallyshift said rod.

13. Ina belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a pair of guidesone for each belt, a shipper rod, an arm carriedby said rod for engagingone of said guides when the rod is in one position and a second armcarried by saidrod for engaging the other guide when the arm is inanother position, said armsv being so arranged on said rod that when onearm engages the guide the other arm is free from its guide, a levermovable about the `said rod as an axis to rock the rod and arms vfromon-e position to another, and means engageable by said lever in eitherposition to lock it in such selected position and pivot` it for swingingin a dierent plane to axially shift said rod.

14. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts,r a pair` ofguidesone for each belt, a shipper rod, an arm carried by said rod forengaging one of said guides when the rod is in one position and a secondarm carried by said rod for engaging the other guide when the arm is inanother position, said arms being so arranged on said rod that when onearm engages the guide the other arm is free from its guide, a levermovable about the said rod as an axis to rock the rod Vand arms from oneposition to another, means engageable by said lever in either positionto lock it in such selected position and pivot it for swinging in adifferent plane to axially shift said rod, comprising a stud with spacedrecesses therein, and a blade on said lever engageable with either ofsaid recesses to Aeilect a' pivot point for the lever.

15. In a belt shifting apparatus for a pair of belts, a belt guide foreach belt, a shipper` lever, and means for selecting and moving one ofsaid guides without moving the other, said means being arranged so as tobe free from the guide not selected when positioned for moving theselected guide, said belt guides and said means being movable in thesame direction for shifting the belts. l

` 16. In a. belt shifting apparatus for three belts, three belt shiftingguides, a control member, means actuated by said control member forselectively shifting either one of two of said guides, and meansoperated by said means for either of the CHARLES A. RICH.

